car wheel alignment - TrakRite

[peterd51]

Hi,

has anyone heard of a TrakRite?

Basically it's a device with two plates where you line up the pointers and then drive a car wheel over it.

If the tracking is out of adjustment then the top plate will be turned slightly by the tyre and you can see the deviation on the pointers.

It's an old device for DIY tracking and I see that they're still avaialble on Ebay around £50 - £60 including postage.

So what's the chances of making one?

Two plates with a bearing in the middle...

both plates with a slope to allow the wheel smooth passage over them...

the top plate sitting up about 1/2" to allow room for the bearing...

diameter about 12 inches maybe?

Any ideas please?

Regards
Peter

 

[Wozzaaah]

Using my crystal ball (ok google then ) I can see that UncleFista has a trakrite and swears by it. Regarding making one I really think you'd be better off buying one, they're only £50 new.

 

[shenion]

I have seen a simpler option. Basically it was a bubble level. You put car on a pair of sliding plates (have seen people use pairs of greased ceramic floor tiles.)

Then turn wheel 20 degrees, zero out level then rotate 20 degrees other way. Can measure caster and camber. Toe in is done by measuring distance between front and rear of wheels.

 

[Unclefista]

Cheers Wozzaaah, fame at last

I've used pieces of wood and string to setting tracking before, it's possible, but it's much easier with the Trackrite thing.

Just place it on level ground, drive car over it and look at the gauge, adjust TRE, repeat.

Bit expensive for what it is TBH, but my car uses an Escort MK2 steering rack and the only TREs I can get are new/old stock (anything up to 30 years old), and the rubber boot perishes within 6 months (good job I bought a load on ebay for pennies) so every time I replace 'em I need to set the tracking, the gauge has saved me a fair amount of cash.

Just don't let friends/family know you have one

 

[malcolm]

Here's a bad photo of mine with a cloth cat in it - it's a bunch of bars inside bars adjustable for width and height. Set to the distance between the fronts of the wheel rim, then move to the rear of the rim and measure the gap. It's cheap and simple, but quite accurate.

 

[peterd51]

Hi,

buy one! Yes £50 isn't much but I could make one for the cost of a bit of time and some off-cuts...

If it was 'work' time @ £30 and hour then yes, it's not worth it, but this is 'hobby' time and hence no cost.

Malcolm, does yours go all the way across to touch both wheels at the same time?

The idea with the TrakRite is that you don't actually measure the amount of toe-in toe-out, etc. If the guage moves it tells you that it out but not by how far.

AIUI there's nothing to set up, just place the unit on the ground and roll over it.

I may have a play with a couple of plates at the weekend when it's light outside to see what happens and if I see some movement then I'll mod it from there.

As Shenion suggests, it could just be a case of two greased metal plates with some sort or pivot point (rivet?) in the middle and a painted line...

Regards
Peter

 

[malcolm]

Malcolm, does yours go all the way across to touch both wheels at the same time?

Yup. You lock it in place at the track width. OK for live axles and wishbone suspension. Bloody trailing arms on Renaults get in the way though.